Control arrangement for a washing machine

ABSTRACT

In an automatic dishwasher, apparatus is provided for improving the cleaning efficiency thereof. The dishwasher is of the type having a plurality of electrical components sequentially operable in an operational cycle controlled by an electrical sequence control timer device adapted for automatic advancement and includes rinsing, washing, drain and fill cycle portions. An electro-mechanical device combines the selection of the operational cycle and the selection of the time duration thereof into a single control and operation. This device includes a cam actuated switch having a plurality of contact points in a package with and operatively linked with an adjustable thermallyresponsive switch. A cam associated with the sequence control timer automatically cancels the time extension of the drain and fill portions, effectively limiting the time extension effect to the washing and drying cycle portions of an operational cycle.

Guth

[75] Inventor: Lauren W. Guth, Louisville. Ky.

[73] Assignee: General Electric Company, [57] ABSTRACT Louisville, y lnan automatic dishwasher. apparatus is provided for [22] Filed: Sept 28,1972 improving the cleaning efficiency thereof. The dishwasher is of thetype having a plurality of electrical PP 3 components sequentiallyoperable in an operational cycle controlled by an electrical sequencecontrol 52 U.S. c1. 307/141 timer device adapted automatic advancementand s1 1m.-c1. 110111 7/00 includes rinsing washmg, 1min and fill cyclePalms- [58] Field of Search 307/141, 141.4, 141.8, electromechanicaldevice COmbineS Selectic?" 307/116 of the operational cycle and theselection of the time duration thereof into a single control andoperation. [56] I References Cited Tlhis iievicte includes a camactuazed switchh having a 1 p many 0 contact omts in a ac a e wit an 0er- UNFTED STATES PATENTS atively linked with Sn adjustablethefmally-respongive 3.070.714 12/1962 Jacobs 307/141 switch. A camassociated i the. Sequence control 8 12 5 timer automatically cancelsthe time extension of the 2 954 925 5/1960 Hen1;';;v"; ;i'. 68/12 Rdrain and fin portions effectively limiting the time tension effect tothe washing andidrying cycle portions of an operational cycle.

3 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures WARMER No DRY 4,6, LONG SHORT I at THOROsHoRT WASH 48 START United States Patent 1191 CONTROL ARRANGEMENT FOR AWASHING MACHINE 1451 Mar. 19, 1974 Primary ExaminerHerman J. HohauserAssistant Examiner-M. Ginsburg Attorney. Agent, or Firm-Francis H. Boos.Jr.

DELlCATE THORO WASH DEucATE Po'rs 5 FANS PATENTEB MR 1 9 I874 sum 2 or 2m A L p START START THORO WASH DELACATE POTS s PANS 6 W mm Y m 8 N 4 I Tmi m w 7w IH m I MW ME G N om R m PLATE WARMER LONG MACHINE BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION thereof.

The provision, in the automatic control of dishwashers, of operationalcycles that are adjustable as to sequence of operation of the variouselectrical components of the machine, has been found very desirable,andallows for more versatility in the machines opera- .tion towardaccomplishing the cleaning task for which it was designed. The priordishwasher art, recognizing the desirability of operational cyclevariance to enable a dishwasher to effectively clean a load of soiledutensils, including heavily soiled pots and pans or lightly soiledtableware, has provided means to permit selective extension of theoperational cycle to obtain a more thorough washing action. U .8. Pat.No. 2,934,925- I-lenshaw et al.1has shown the use of a non-adjustable,thermally-responsive type of cycle extender device. US. Pat. No.3,070,7l4Jacobs has shown the use of an adjustable, thermally-responsivetype of cycle extender device in adishwashing machine.- US. Pat. No.3,600,602-Yartzhas shown the. use of two such adjustable,thermally-responsive cycle extender devices plus an operational cycleselector control, and a sequence control mechanism providing ratherthorough washability in a dishwashing machine. While the principlehasbeen shown-of interrupting the energizing circuit to the sequencecontrol timers to provide extended operational time in the machinecycles and components, there are drawbacks in those machines where ithas been applied. Forexample, as taught by Yartz, it may be necessaryfor the operator to manipulate as many as four separate controls toobtain the correct operational cycle for a particular load of soiledcooking and eating utensils. The circuitry as disclosed by Yartz forcesperiodic interruption of electrical power to the drying cyclevheatingelement when vthe drying cycle time extender is in operation. Astaught by Jacobs, the thermally-responsiveswitch heating element isconnected directly to the power source when the fill eriod bypass switchis closed. The heater then is no longer in series with thethermally-responsive switch, and this results in a need for a heatingelement that is sturdier and more expensive, to operate at near 100%rating on line voltage.

It would-be beneficial then, to provide the bperator with a betterunderstanding of the capabilities of her dishwashing machine. Such wouldcertainly bethe case if the number of operations needed to set themachine into motion were reduced. Further, it would be financiallyadvantageous to reduce the number of electrical and mechanicalcomponents and to simplify the operational circuitry. It is therefore anobject of the present invention to provide an automatic dishwashingmachine having certain of its operational controls combined.

It is a more specific object of the present invention to provide, in adishwashing machine, a combination operational cycle selector and cycletime duration ex- 2 tender selector, and further, to provide means forcancelling the extension effect during the fill and drain portions ofthe cycle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, thereis provided apparatus for improving the cleaning efficiency in anautomatic dishwasher of the type having a plurality of electricalcomponents sequentially opera- 1 ble in an operational cycle controlledby an electrical sequence control means adapted for automaticadvancement and including at least washing action cycle portions forrinsing and washing and draining and fill cycle portions.

More particularly, the presently preferred embodiment comprises:

selectively operable means therewith for enabling simultaneously manualselection of a particular operational cycle and extension of the totaltime duration of the cycle; and means for automatically cancelling thetime extension of the draining and-fill portions of the cycle wherebythe tiem extension effect is restricted to the washing action cycleportions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 3 is a schematic representationof the preferred.

embodiment of ,the electrical circuitry in the dishwasher shown in FIG.1; and I FIG. 4 is a graph type chart showing various cycles provided byimplementation of the control means of the dishwasher shown in FIG. 1,in accordance with the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. 1, there isillustrated an automatic dishwasher 10 having an outer cabinet ll'and aninner cabinet 12. Inner cabinet 12 defines a washing chamber 13 whichcontains a pair of vertically separated dish supporting racks 14, onlyone of which is shown. Each rack is slidable outwardlyfrom the chamber13 and is adapted to receive and support articles to be washed withinthe washing chamber 13. A closure member or door 15 is pivotal about asubstantially horizontal axis defined by a pair of hinges 16, only oneof which is visible in FIG. 1. The door 15 provides access to thewashing chamber 13 so that articles may be inserted into and removedfrom the racks l4.

It is also illustrated in FIG. 1 that the lower extremity of the washingchamber 13 has a floor or bottom wall 19 which gradually slopes to a lowpoint 20. Downwardly adjacent the low point 20 is a sump 21 whereinwashing liquid from the washing chamber 13 will tend to gravitate. Belowthe bottom wall 19 and supported drainage conduit 26. The conduit 26 issecured to the lower outlet end of the sump 21 by the means of a clamp27. The opposite end of the conduit 26 is secured to the intake or theinlet side of the housing of the pump 24. The main outlet of the pump 24communicates with a conduit 29 leading to a rotatable spray I arm 30 ofthe reaction-driven type. The conduit 29 extends upwardly through ahumped portion 31 of the washing chambers bottom wall 19 and serves as apedestal upon which the spray arm 30 is rotatably mounted.

The spray arm 30 comprises a horizontally elongated hollow body incommunication with the conduit 29 and is provided with a plurality ofspaced-apart orifices 32 in its upwardly facing surface which serve todischarge a spray of washing liquid therefrom and throughout the washingchamber 13. At least one of the orifices 32 is faced generally laterallyrelative to the longitudinal axis of the rotatable spray arm so thatforce of the liquid discharged therefrom exerts a counterforce upon thespray arm 30 and causes it to rotate relative to its conduit 29. v

The valve of the pump 24, shown in FIG. 1, includes a pivotal valveelement (not shown) within the housing of the pump 24 that is movablebetween two positions. In one of these positions, the movable valveelement closes an effluent discharge conduit or drain outlet 33 and, atthe same time, opens the pumps main outlet through the verticallyoriented conduit 29. In the other of its two positions, the movablevalve closes the pumps main outlet to the spray arm and simultaneouslyopens the drain outlet 33 whereby effluent is discharged therethrough tothe household sewage system.

An electrical resistance heating element 35 may be provided in the lowerend of the washing chamber 13 for heating washing liquid accumulated inthe lower end of the chamber and particularly for liquid extraction ordrying of articles within the washing chamber 13 upon completion of thewash and rinse steps in the machines operational cycle. Admittance ofwater to the chamber 13 is controlled by an electrical solenoidtype fillvalve 36 shown in FIG. 3 and referred to later in this specification.The water enters through a conduit 37 leading to a fill funnel (notshown). The funnel is mounted between the inner cabinet 12 and the outercabinet 11 in communication with an opening through the inner cabinet 12whereby incoming water is directed into the washing chamber 13 so thatit will gravitate downwardly to the chambers lower end. The latter fillstep occurs prior to each wash or rinse step in the operational cycle ofthe machine after which the motor 23 is energized to drive the pump 24to recirculate continuously the liquid from the chamber 13 outwardlythrough the spray arm 30 onto the articles stored within the chamber 13.

Each rinse or wash step continues for a predetermined time after whichthe motor 23 is automatically de-en'ergized followed by energization ofthe valve 25 which closes off the main pump outlet through the conduit29 and opens the drain outlet 33. The motor 23 is then re-energizedwhereby the effluent accumulated in the bottom of the chamber 13 ispumped outwardly to the household sewage system. As in most dishwashersof the type described, the rinse and wash steps differ primarily in therespective length of time alloted to each and the fact that detergent isadded by automatic means (not shown) early in the wash cycle. A heatingmeans such as heating element 35 may also be energized during the washstep to raise the temperature of the washing liquid and thereby increaseits effectiveness.

The machine shown in FIG. 1 is also provided with a comparatively smallaerator inlet 39 that communicates with the conduit 26 and has a tube 40leading therefrom upwardly between the outer sidewall 11 and the innersidewall 12 to the area behind the machine's control panel 41. Thelatter apparatus is provided in accordance with the teaching of L. W.Guth, in US. Pat. No. 3,621,856, and assigned to the assignee of thepresent invention. As disclosed by Guth, this apparatus permitsselective injection of ambient air at the intake side of pump 24 duringa particular cycle of the machine whereby the energy level of thewashing liquid pumped from the pump 24 is reduced to permit gentlewashing of particularly fragile items.

In FIG. 2, a portion of the control panel 41 of dishwasher 10 is shown.In accordance with the present invention there are provided, mounted onthe back side of the control panel 41, certain control means which areillustrated in the schematic diagram of FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 3, themain control means of the dishwasher 10 is an electrical sequencecontrol means or sequential control timer contained within a dotted linerectangle and identified by the numeral 42. Another control means fordishwasher 10 is selectively operable means or electro-mechanical devicefor enabling simultaneously manual selection of a particular operationalcycle and extension of the total time duration of the cycle, such as thecombination cycle selectorextender device illustrated in a dotted linerectangle and identified by the numeral 43 in FIG. 3. The cycleselector-extender device 43, in addition to being used for selecting theproper cycle for a particular application, is adapted to enableselective extension of certain steps in the dishwashers operationalcycle. A third control means for the dishwasher 10 is a dry cycleselector device 44. As illustrated both in FIGS. 2 and 3, manual controlknobs 46, 47, and 48 are provided whereby the operator of the dishwasher10 can manually respectively operate control means 42, 43, 44.

Timer 42 is a typical mechanism utilized for advancing a dishwasherthrough its operational cycle and comprises a synchronous timer motor 52with switch operating means in the form of cams driven by the timermotor 52 which are disposed to operate a switch means controlling theenergization of the electrical components heretofore described. Theswitch means of the timer 42 includes switches 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58,59 and 60 which are adapted to be activated respectively by cams 61, 62,63, 64, 65, 66, 67 and 68. The plurality of sequence control cams,including cams 61 through 68, are not specifically shown as a unit;however, the manner in which they are driven by the timer motor 52 tosequentially operate the switches 53 through 60 is wellknown in the art.

The cycle selector-extender device 43 includes a normally-closed,thermally-responsive switch means such as switch 71 preferably includinga normally-closed bimetallic element constituting a switch in serieswith the energizing circuit for the timer motor 52. Switch 71 has abiasing means in the form of a leaf spring 72 associated therewith thatis adapted to be biased toward the bimetallic element by cam means suchas cam 73. The cam 73 is operatively linked by a manually rotatableshaft to be driven by the manipulation of a' knob 47. The presentlypreferred construction of the thermallyresponsive switch 71 is of aknown type that includes a pair of metallic strips each having adifferent coefficient of expansion relative to the other, laminatedtogether, whereby they form a heat sensitive device prone to curl ordeflect in response to being heated. An electric heating means such asheating element 74 is provided adjacent the switch 71 and coupledserially therewith, whereby heat generated by the heating element 74will cause the switch 71 to react and break contact between a contactpoint 75 on the end of the bimetallic element and a contact point 76.

Further included in the cycle selector-extender device 43 is cycleselector means such as switch 80 including contact point 81, the switch80 being adapted to be biased by a cam 82 so as to make contact with oneor more of a series of contact points 83, 84 and 85. The cam 82 isoperatively linked by the manually rotatable shaft to be driven by amanipulation of the knob 47, whereby turning the control knob 47 to anyone of a number of panel indicated positions closes the contact pointstherein necessary to instiga te a particular single cycle and at thesame time cancels any earlier selected cycle. The control systemutilized with the preferred embodiment of the present invention providesfive separate cycles of operation as shown in FIG. 2. The presentinvention provides that the control device 43 'be adapted to instigate achosen single cycle and at the same time to selectively vary the wash,rinse and dry timesin two of thecycles of operation provided in thedishwasher 10, i.e., the mini-wash and thoro-wash cycles.

The control means or dry cycle selector device 44 in-' cludes switch 90operatively linked by a manually roin either the mini-wash or thethoro-wash cycles.

To place the dishwasher 10 into operation in the thoro-wash or normalcycle, the selector knob 47 is rotated so that its arrow pointssomewhere within the area indicated on the panel as thoro-wash. Sincethe same control knob 47 and thereby device 43 are used to selectivelyvary the length of the wash and dry times in this cycle and since thiscycle time is infinitely variable within indicated spaces and therebyduration of time alloted for the thoro-wash" cycle, the arrow will beplaced so as to align with the indicated short" 93 so as to produce awash cycle that is approximately normal. With the arrow of knob 47aligning with the short part of the thoro-wash cycle and with knob 48set for long dry, a total cycle time of approximately 53% minutes willresult. (This compares with a total time of 90% minutes in a situationwhere the arrow points to tatable shaft to be driven by a manipulationof knob 48 so as to make contact with contact points 91 or 92 orneither. The device 44 is adapted to be manually set to any of its threepositions by rotation of the knob 48 as indicated in FIG. 2 and hasinternal detent means (not shown) for holding the chosen position untilsuch time that a'different cycle is selected.

An important aspect of the present invention is that the selectivevariance of the wash, rinse and dry steps heretofore described isaccomplished without affecting the water fill and effluent drainingactivities in the operational cycle. Also unaffected are the rinse andhold" cycle and the plate warmer cycle. The manner in which the devices43 and 44 may be utilized to affect particular steps'in the cycles ofthe dishwasher 10 will be developed hereinafter as a part of thedescription of the dishwasher 10 when operated in one of its cycles.

The control system of the dishwasher 10 provides five separate cycles ofoperation as graphically represented in FIG. 4. These five regularcycles of operation, namely plate warmer, rinse and hold, miniwash,delicate, and thoro-wash, are made possible through the-utilization ofvarious cycle circuits by bringing switch 80 and its contact point 81into contact with certain of the contact points 83, 84, 85 of the cycleselector'extender device 43 in respectively different combinations. FIG.2 shows that the knob 47 of the device 43 is adapted to be manually setto any one of a plurality vof positions. Additionally, knob 47 andthereby the control device 43 may be used to selectively vary the lengthof the wash, rinse and dry steps the long variation of the thoro-washcycle). The main control knob 46 of sequence control means 42 is rotatedclockwise until its arrow aligns with the start position 94 of thethoro-wash cycle. (It will be noted that knob 46 has three otherstarting points for use with variousother cycles). This latter operationserves to move the cam 63 of the sequence control timer 42 to closeswitch and the former operation serves to rotate the cam 82 of device 43so as to bring switch 80 and its contact point 81 into contact withcontact points 84 and 85. This then completes the energizing circuit tothe timer motor 52, and control of the operation of the motor 23, theheater 35, the diverter valve 25 and the water fill valve 36 is placedin switches 58, 59 and 60 of the sequence control means 42 which arerespectively controlled by the cams 66, .67 and 68 thereof. The cams ofthe sequence control timer 42 controlling the latter switches areadapted to providea sequence of operations which include,chronologically, a wash, a rinse, several successive washes and rinses,each including a fill and an effluent discharge, and a final liquidremoval or drying operation. The latter operational sequence isgraphically set forth in FIG. 4.

As has been already mentioned, thermally-responsive switch 71, which isnormally closed, is in series in the circuit for energizing the timermotor 52. The circuit for energizing the timer motor 52 may be tracedfrom the power supply conductor L1 through the switch 55 closed by cam63, through contacts 85, 84, and 81, thus completing one leg of thecircuit to timer motor 52. The other leg of timer motor 52 is thenconnected through the normally-closed, thermally-responsive switch 71which in turn may be traced through the power supply conductor L thuscompleting the timer motor energizing circuit.'Electric heating element74 is connected in a separate parallel circuit to the timer motorenergizing circuit through switch 57. The heating element 74 is inseries with thermally-responsive switch 71 that responds to heatgenerated thereby. Switch 57 is designed to be normally closed; however,cam has been adaptedto cause switch 57 to open during the complete rinseand hold cycle, the plate warmer cycle and for all water fill andeffluent discharges, thus avoiding energization of the heating element74 and thereby allowing switch 71 to remain closed, further allowingtimer motor 52 to remain energized.

Electric heating element 74 will be energized during each and every washand rinse step and the final liquid removal or drying operation. Controlknob 47 of the control device 43 is adapted to permit selective movementof cam 73 whereby the thermally-responsive switch 71 may deflect inresponse to the heat generated by the heating element 74 to separatecontacts 75 and 76 interrupting the timer motor energizing circuit. Suchdeflection of the thermally-responsive switch 71 also breaks the circuitto the heating element 74, whereby the thermally-responsive switch 71 ispermitted to cool and reclose to complete the timer motor energizingcircuit. The latter action will continue to repeatedly occur with itsfrequency of occurrence depending upon the extent to which the leafspring 72 is biased by the cam 73. As previously mentioned, knob 47 ofthe control device 43 may be manually rotated to increase or decreasethe bias or deflection of the leaf spring 72 relative to thethermally-responsive switch 71 in order to vary the frequency ofresponse of the switch 71. In this manner, the frequency and duration ofthe repeated energization and de-energization of the timer motor 52 canbe selectively varied. This enables the operator of the dishwasher tochoose the length of time the total washing action of the cycle willtake in accordance with the nature and amount of soil on the items to bewashed therein. As provided here in the thorowash cycle, a short timemay be chosen by knob 47 where, in accordance therewith, the cam 73 willhold the leaf spring 72 at such a deflection toward thethermally-responsive switch 71 so as to limit its opening andinterruption of the timer motor energizing circuit. Thus, with the knob47 in the short position, normal or minimum wash time can be selectivelyattained for each wash, rinse and dry step in the thoro-wash" cycle.

It should be. noted that the cams 66 and 67 are formed such that, foreach wash and rinse step, they will operate switches 58 and 59 to firstopen the fill valve 36 for a predetermined time, after which the fillvalve 36.is de-energized and the motor 23 is energized to commence thewashing action in the wash chamber. The diverter valve 25 is energizedto divert the washing fluid through the pump to the washing chamber justprior to the energization of the motor 23 and is then reenergized at theend of the wash and rinse steps whereby the washing liquid is drainedout of the machine.

Referring to FIG. 4, it will be seen that, had selector knob 48 been setfor normal dry and at the same time selector knob 47 had been placed inthe short position of the thoro-wash cycle, the liquid removal or dryingtime duration would have been seven minutes rather than the fourteenminutes provided by the setting of knob 48 in the long dry position.Likewise, had the selector knob 47 been rotated to align with the longposition of the thoro-wash cycle, the drying time would have been 14minutes as compared with 28 minutes had the knob 48 been set for thelong dry." Further, knob 48 may be set to provide no drying time at allas provided by the choice of settings as shown in FIG. 2. As shown inFIG. 4, this choice of dry time, that is, long, normal, or no dry atall, applies to the mini-wash" and delicate cycle as well as to thethoro-wash.

A better understanding may be had of the operation of dry cycle selectordevice 44 and its operation when looked at in conjunction with sequencecontrol timer 42. When, in the course of operation of the dishwasher 10in the thoro-wash cycle, and the timer motor 52 advances the timer 42through to the point where the final liquid removal or drying step is tocommence, cam 67 will allow switch 59 to come into contact with contact96. Then, by placing control knob 48 of the dry cycle selector device 44into the long position, switch will close thecircuit with contact 91thus causing heating element 35 to become activated and to operateuninterruptedly. Should the operator desire to place the knob 48 of thedry cycle selector device 44 in the normal position, he may do so andswitch 90 will close the circuit with contact 92. Simultaneous with theclosing of switch 59 with contact 96, an operation caused by cam 67, cam68 will cause switch 60 to close. This completes the circuit through thenormal cycle thereby allowing heater element 35 to again be activated.The difference in time results by the fact that cam 68 only allowsswitch 60 to be closed approximately 50 percent of the time that cam 67allows switch 59 to be in contact with contact 96. In other words, thenormal period of the dry cycle is approximately onehalf the longportion. When the dry cycle selector knob 48 is placed in the no-dryposition, the circuit to heating element 35 is left open and element 35is therefore not energized.

FIG. 4 also shows the range of total cycle times allowable for themini-wash cycle as provided by the device 43 and in particular by theselector knob 47. It can be seenv then that with knob 47 aligned withthe short position of the mini-wash cycle and with the knob 48 alignedwith the long dry, a total cycle time of 20 minutes is available.Likewise, with the knob 47 pointing to the long position of themini-wash cycle and with the knob 48 pointing to the long dry, a totalcycle time of 53% minutes is obtainable. Virtually any total cycle timewithin these two limits is obtainable by the selective variation of timeof knob 47 within the allowable limits in the mini-wash cycle.

The delicate cycle, as explained in greater detail in the aforementionedU.S. Pat. No. 3,621,856Guth, is provided so that particularly fragileitems may be washed in a relatively safe fashion. Preferably, inaccordance with the teachings of the Guth Patent, provision is made forintroduction of air into the machines pump during the delicate cyclewhereby the energy level of the washing liquid is substantially reducedto protect the delicate items being washed. In accordance with thepresent invention, with the knob 47 aligned with the delicate cycle andwith the knob 48 aligned with the long dry, a total cycle time of 53%minutes is obtainable. Here, the total dry time is 14 minutes which maybe varied to either 7 minutes or no dry time at all by the propermanipulation of knob 48.

While it has been shown that a dishwasher constructed with provision forincreasing the wash time through the control system is a desirable wayof obtaining cleanability in a dishwasher, those systems in present useleave much to be desired. For example, in one well-known dishwasher, itis necessary for the operator to operate four different controls;namely, a cycle selector, a wash time extender selector, a dry timeextender selector and a sequence timer control. As such, the standarddishwasher controls make use of two cycle extender controller devices.One particular machine also interrupts the power to the drying heatingelement when the drying cycle selector extender is in operation. Inother words, the heating element for the drying cycle is operatedintermittently. Here, however, in accordance with this invention, thecycle selector and the cycle extender have been incorporated within onecontrol, whereby the operator need only make one setting to choose thecorrect cycle for the particular operation she wishes to have performed,as well as to choose the length of that particular cycle appropriate tothe amount of soil on the load to be washed. Further, by leaving the drycycle selector in the normal dry position and which would ordinarilysuffice for most dishwashing operations, even the dry cycle is extendedthrough the use of the one above-mentioned control with the dry cycleheating element operating uninterruptedly. It is therefore obvious thatthe understanding and operation of such a dishwasher is much simplified.

The operator can get a much wider range of choices of cycle durationthan was previously available, while at the same time being able to makethe choice much more quickly and with a much more thorough understandingof the system. After having selected the cycle and its duration, theoperator need only to set the machine into motion by the appropriatesetting on the sequence control timer device. By utilizing the foregoingconstruction and the circuitry described and shown, a dishwasher isprovided with selective versatility in washing and drying time which istailored to the needs of the particular utensils to be washed in thedishwasher and in a straightforward fashion. Not only has the operationand understanding of the dishwasher been simplified, but by joining thecycle selector and the cycle extender together in one unit, thecircuitry has been much simplified. As has been shown, there is a needfor only one thermally-responsive switchmeans such as the bimetallicelement with associated heating element. What has been affected then isa superior dishwashing machine providing desirable and improvedversatility at a lesser expense than has been formerly available.

It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that while what isdescribed, at present, is considered to be the preferred embodiment ofthis invention in accordance with the Patent Statutes, changes may bemade in the disclosed apparatus without actually departing from the truespirit and scope of this invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In an automatic dishwasher of the type having a plurality ofelectrical components sequentially operable in at least one operationalcycle controlled by an electrical sequence control means, the cycleincluding at least water fill, drain, and washing action portions, acontrol arrangement comprising:

a. a manually operable device adapted to provide simultaneous visualselection of an operational cycle and the duration thereof, the deviceincluding;

1. cycle extender means coupled to the sequence control means forperiodically interrupting operation of said sequence control means toextend the operation thereof for desired durations as a function-of thesetting of the manual device;

2. selector means coupled to the sequence control means to permitoperation of said sequence control means only when said sequence controlmeans and the manual device are set for the same cycle; and

b. means responsive to the sequence control means for disablingoperation of the cycle extender means during predetermined cycleportions.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein said manually operable devicecomprises a movable shaft having a plurality of cam surfaces thereon,the cycle extender means includes a thermally-responsive switch andcontrol means coupling said thermal switch with one of said cam surfacesfor selectively varying the response time of said thermal switch, andthe selector means includes a switch having a plurality of contactpositions coupled with the sequence control means and being operativewith a second of said cam surfaces for selection of a particularoperational cycle.

3. In an automatic dishwasher of the type having a plurality ofelectrical components sequentially operable in a plurality ofoperational cycles controlled by an electrical sequence control timer,and including at least washing action cycle portions for rinsing andwashing, drain and fill cycle portions andadrying cycle portion,

'a control arrangement comprising:

a. a manually operable, electromechanical device for simultaneouslyselecting particular operational cycles and the time duration of atleast one of the cycles, the electromechanical device comprising:

1. a rotatable shaft having a plurality of cams;

2. a first switch having a plurality of contact points and responsive toone of the cams to supply power to the timer only when the selectedcycle corresponds to the cycle on the timer;

3. a second, thermally-responsive switch operative only duringpredetermined portions of a dishwashing cycle for periodicallyinterrupting power to the timer thereby extending the normal timeduration;

4. biasing means coupled to the thermallyresponsive switch andresponsive to a second cam on the shaft for variably adjusting theofftime of the timer;

b. a cam means associated with the timer for disabling the timeextension of the drain and fill cycle portions whereby the timeextension effect is restricted to the washing action and drying cycleportions.

1. In an automatic dishwasher of the type having a plurality ofelectrical components sequentially operable in at least one operationalcycle controlled by an electrical sequence control means, the cycleincluding at least water fill, drain, and washing action portions, acontrol arrangement comprising: a. a manuaLly operable device adapted toprovide simultaneous visual selection of an operational cycle and theduration thereof, the device including;
 1. cycle extender means coupledto the sequence control means for periodically interrupting operation ofsaid sequence control means to extend the operation thereof for desireddurations as a function of the setting of the manual device;
 2. selectormeans coupled to the sequence control means to permit operation of saidsequence control means only when said sequence control means and themanual device are set for the same cycle; and b. means responsive to thesequence control means for disabling operation of the cycle extendermeans during predetermined cycle portions.
 2. selector means coupled tothe sequence control means to permit operation of said sequence controlmeans only when said sequence control means and the manual device areset for the same cycle; and b. means responsive to the sequence controlmeans for disabling operation of the cycle extender means duringpredetermined cycle portions.
 2. The invention of claim 1 wherein saidmanually operable device comprises a movable shaft having a plurality ofcam surfaces thereon, the cycle extender means includes athermally-responsive switch and control means coupling said thermalswitch with one of said cam surfaces for selectively varying theresponse time of said thermal switch, and the selector means includes aswitch having a plurality of contact positions coupled with the sequencecontrol means and being operative with a second of said cam surfaces forselection of a particular operational cycle.
 2. a first switch having aplurality of contact points and responsive to one of the cams to supplypower to the timer only when the selected cycle corresponds to the cycleon the timer;
 3. a second, thermally-responsive switch operative onlyduring predetermined portions of a dishwashing cycle for periodicallyinterrupting power to the timer thereby extending the normal timeduration;
 3. In an automatic dishwasher of the type having a pluralityof electrical components sequentially operable in a plurality ofoperational cycles controlled by an electrical sequence control timer,and including at least washing action cycle portions for rinsing andwashing, drain and fill cycle portions and a drying cycle portion, acontrol arrangement comprising: a. a manually operable,electromechanical device for simultaneously selecting particularoperational cycles and the time duration of at least one of the cycles,the electromechanical device comprising:
 4. biasing means coupled to thethermally-responsive switch and responsive to a second cam on the shaftfor variably adjusting the off-time of the timer; b. a cam meansassociated with the timer for disabling the time extension of the drainand fill cycle portions whereby the time extension effect is restrictedto the washing action and drying cycle portions.